Apparatus for separating and folding paper



35 eeeeeee haet 1. W. A. WILSON, G. DUNGAN, & G. LAUDER.

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` 9- Patented Apr. 24,1883.

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W. A. WILSON, G. BUNGAN. &:`G. LAUDERI APBABATUS FOR SEPARATINGAND .FOLDING PAPBR. No. 276,369. Patented .Am-.24. 1883.

g l 3LSheets-Sheet'. W. A.. WILSON, G. DUNCAN, & G. LAUDER. APPARATUS FOR SEPAEATING AND FOLDING. PAPER. NO. 276,369. 4 Patented Apr.24,1883.

N, FETERS. Pmlvmhngrpher. Washington. D4 C.

'UNITED STATES t PATENT OFFICEl TVILLI AM' ASHLEY WILSON AND GEORGE DUNCAN, OF LIVERPOOL, ENG- LAND, AND GEORGE LAUDER, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUAS FOR SEPARATING AND FOLDlNGPAPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Pate t No. 276,369, dated April 24, 1883., Application filed December 10, 1873. Patented in England November 1D 1870, No. 3,031.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that we,WILLIAM ASHLEY WIL- SON and GEORGE DUNOAN, both of Liverpool, England, and GEORGE LAUDER, of Pittsburg, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful apparatus for separating and folding paper as delivered from rotary web-printing machines, (said invention being' substantially the same for which we obtained Letters Patent in England, granted to us November 19, 1870, and numbered 3,U31;) and we do hereby declare that tle following is a`full, clear, and exact description of our invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters or numbers of reference marked thereon.

Onr-invention consists mainly in the conbinatio of three folding-rolls, oe of saidrolls provided with a foldig-blade, one provided With a gripper, and one provided with both folding-blade and gripper, said rolls relatively arranged to give two consecntive foldsto a Sheet passing between the same; and, secondarily, in specific mechanisn for deliveringa sheet to thtri-roll folderfand for detaching the sheet from a perforated web, all as Will hereinafter nore fully appeal'. l'

To enable others skilled in the art with which it is most nearly connected to make and use our invention, we will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of our specification, Figure l is a side elevation of a rotary wcb-printing machine furnished with our improvements. Fig. 2 is a plan of the folding devices. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the folding devices. Fig. 4: is a-transverse section and elevation, showing the laying-fly. Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the folding-blade and slotted rolls, cans, and grippers, all of which parts are adapted to separate or detach Sheets-say of newspaper size--from the web, to fold each such separated sheet three times,` and to deliver the' folded sheets.

In the accompanying drawings Similar letters or numbers indicate the same parts.

The machinery or apparatns constituting the invention has been devised and perfected for the purposes of separating or detaching sheets from the web as delivered from the printing-inachine folding such Sheets as often as may be desired in practicc, and delivering the folded papers. The end of the printed web is led direct to a saw or knife cylinder and each sheet or length all but separated from the web. The web is then led between tapes to a pair of rollers,onc having a folding blad c;

or blades and the other a corresponding slot or slots o n its periphery. These rollers run faster than the saw or knii'e cylinder, and hence detach sheet after sheet. They also serve to give the first fold in consequence of each folding blade delivering the closed double edge of a sheet. A brush is provided to prevent the free end of the sheet, as aforesaid, from being carried round with the roller.

'To give the second fold the Sheets are passed .between the upper and a third folding-blade and grooved rollers. For the third (usually a cross) fold, the. sheets are made to pass between cross-rollers. The fonrth fold is effected by rollers whose axes are preferably parallel to the cross-rollers for the third fold. After receiving the fonrth fold the papers slide down onar fly, which delivers them.

In the accompanying drawings, 1 shows the web of paper as delivered to the rota tin g printing cylinders. The course of said web before it is cut into sheets and of the sheets during folding and laying is indicated on Fig. 3 by arrows. The web of paper, delivered at a. uniform speed from the printing-cylinders, is gnided between the pulley's 2 and rotating drun 3, thence between the said roll 3 and rotating* perforator-roll 4, carrying the toothed blade 5, whereby the web is transversely perforated at the required distances. The web so perforated passes downward and endward between the traveling-tapes 6, driven by the roller 6 3 thence upward with them and between the rollers 8, such rollers 8 being' suspended by straps 9 from the eccentric pulley 10, fixed on the shaft 11. From rollers 8 the web passes between small rollers 12 to the folding-blade and slot-rollers 13. When a sheet has 'traveled halfiway through the rollers 13, the brush 14: causing the free single end to pass dcwnward between the tapes 15, the protrudin g foldingblade 16* in the-lower roller 13 forces the sheet IOO , is torn off. The rollers 13 may be made to run j forciug the sheet between the said cross-rollers 'necting-rods 25, centered lever 26, cam 27,

into a s lot in the upper roller 13, where it is l leld by 'grippers 16. The eecentrie straps and pulleys are adjusted to cause the downward stroke of the rollers S. After the closed double of the sheet has been carried about half-way round the upper roller 13, and when the perfor-ated line has passed the rollers 12, the sheet faster than the tapes G, and in this way tear off sheet after sheet. To give the second fold, a protruding folding-blade, l on the top roller enters a slot in the roll'er 17, and grippers in 17 hold the sheet and deliver it past the rotating" 'oller 18 to the tapes 19. The folding-blades in the rollers 13 are caused to fall inward almost within the circumference thereof by the cams 20, for the purpose of allowing the paper to be easily carried away without objectionable friction. A large slot is* forned in the bottom roller 13, to allow the foldingblade on the top roller to pass. Gams 21 operate the grippers 16. The tapes 19 convey the sheets, after two folds are made, downward over the rotating cross-roller 22, where a knife, 23, caused to vibrate by slotted lever 24, conand return-spring 28, gives the third t'old by .44, from which it is carried downward by the tapes 29. The tapes 20 are carried on the laying-fly, which is caused to vibrate by the connecting-rod 30, operated through the eccen tric-pin 31. V i

It will be evident' that, as shown on the drawings, all the parts in direct contact with the web, as well as with the separated and folded sheets of paper, have the same surface speed, and tlat the laying-fly delivers a t'olded sheet during each double Vibration.

It will also be evident that the moving parts are so geared that every revolution of the driving-shat't causes one revolution of the perforator-roll 4, and also one revolution of the pin 31.

Having now described the nature of our said invention and particularized the same by details which after lengthened trials'wc have found to answer well in ractice', we would have it understood that we do not claim broadly rotary tbldingmechanism, either alone or in combination with webrinting mechanisn, web-severing mechanism, or sheet-controlling* mechanism. Neither do we claim-a foldingblade mounted in a revolving carrier, in combination with a eompanion carrier provided with devices which seize, retain,and carry the doubled sheet, whether such combination be used alone or in conjunction with mechanism for severing a web and nechanism for controlling the leading end of a sheet. Neither do we herein clain broadly the combination of a rotary cylinder or carrier provided with a folding-blade, a rotary cylinder or carrier pro.- vided with sheet-nipping devices and a foldingblade, and sheet-seizing devices which co-operate with the last-named folding-blade to im part a second fold to the sheet, except when said sheet-seizng device is a roll provided with a gripper; but

What we do claim is- 1. The combination ot' three folding-ro]ls,` one of wlich is provided With a folding-blade' and a gripper, a second with a folding-blade, and a third with 'a gripper, substantally as- 

